Judgment

The Dietitians Association of Australia can't register a logo featuring the words 'accredited nutritionist' as a trade mark, with a delegate agreeing with a competing nutritionist group that the association should not have a monopoly over the highly descriptive term.

A judge has ordered Seven West-owned publication The West Australian to pay a former public servant $180,000 in damages over an article about an allegation of fraud that had “a sensationalist overtone”.

A unit of petrol store chain EG Australia has sued Ashurst and LegalVision alleging they breached their implied duty of care through advice given to Woolworths about the assignment of a disputed Sydney petrol station lease.

A group member in a class action against Johnson & Johnson unit DePuy International has lost his bid to challenge his compensation determination 12 years after the case settled, with a judge finding that the independent counsel conducting the determination was not bound by the rules of procedural fairness.   

Lawyers are allowed to take a cut from a class action settlement or judgment under a so-called solicitors’ common fund order, the Full Federal Court has ruled, saying they are a permissive use of the court’s power.

Santos has largely succeeded in its bid for documents from the Environmental Defenders Office and expert witnesses in a failed case challenging the construction of the oil and gas company's $5.6 billion Barossa pipeline.

The former chief executive officer of the North Australian Aboriginal Justice Agency has won her case alleging she was unfairly dismissed after complaining about the CFO, with a judge finding there was "extreme" unfairness in the decision to terminate.

Defunct microloan company Ferratum has been hit with $16 million in penalties for overcharging low-income consumers during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, with a judge noting the company's conduct affected a large number of vulnerable customers.

Network Ten has won $2 million in costs against Bruce Lehrmann in his failed defamation case over the broadcaster's coverage of Brittany Higgins' rape allegations, after agreeing to a substantial haircut on its $3.7 million legal bill.

In a loss for the Australian Taxation Office, the Full Federal Court has found that payments made by Asahi Breweries-owned Schweppes to PepsiCo under agreements to sell brands such as Pepsi and Mountain Dew in Australia were not subject to a royalty withholding tax.